The Enemy

by Tiffany Cook

Its maneuvers are sheer
Brilliance.
Tactics?
Flawless.
And every tear that falls,
Gives it another prisoner
Of war.
Drop by drop it advances;
Overthrowing my mind from its
Lofty throne.
Its presence?
Fierce.
Controlling.
Its continued border control?
Seamless.
There is no way around.

It’s undeniable.

Every scream that goes
Unheard,
Every tremble gone
Unseen.
It all adds up
To this.
It may be undeniable,
But it is also
Inescapable.
Mightily forcing it way,
Through the glass portals;
It will come,
And it will prevail.
Like the many that came before,
It is terribly
Persistent.
But unlike the others-
It is undeniably more
Magnificent.

It's undeniable.

Like water on rock,
It pounds for years,
Wearing away
My sanity.
Standing;
Tall and proud,
I am as rock,
Sturdy.
Raise the white flag!
For I have a crack.
A sliver of imperfection.
It takes its defining move.

It's undeniable.

Strategy means all,
And although I have all the moves
All planned out,
I have lost
The war.
The crack deepens –
It comes in.
Infiltrating my hard built walls.
And while I face defeat,
As prey faces death,
I am not surprised.
For I knew all along
That it was
Undeniable.

It's undeniable.

For every world it conquers,
For every town
It burns,
A memory is vanquished.
A silver, joy-filled thread –
Gone.
Without any bloodshed
At all.
It commands fear,
Commands confusion.
It will penetrate you,
As it has penetrated me.
We cannot fight,
What has already won.
Seeping through
The blood choked cracks
It takes order and chaos
As one.
Your fate?
At the hands of it?
Ha.